Polymers and Adhesives for Stone Conservation

A. Project Goals â¿¿ 1. Optimize and field test a new polymer system for preservation of deteriorating marble and limestone that was developed with federal funding. 2. Explore the synthesis of novel two-component epoxy adhesives for joining stone that has the required adhesive properties but improved durability and water vapor transmission compared to current commercial epoxy adhesives. 3. Substantially involve graduate and undergraduate students in the development of polymeric coating systems for cultural heritage. B. Project Objectives â¿¿ 1. Novel sol-gel coatings were developed in previous projects and will undergo field trials. Working with NCPTT, locations for field trials will be identified. Coating formulation will be scaled-up and applied at those sites. 2. The adhesive system to be explored will be comprised of an epoxy resin, amine curing agent, a sol-gel component and reactive POSS for nano-reinforcement. a) Aliphatic epoxy resins will be explored. b) A large variety of curing agents will be screened c) Small amounts of epoxy-functionalized polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) will be explored as an additive. d) A sol-gel component will be incorporated to form a hybrid sol-gel adhesive system.